The Penn's Grove record., 1887-07-09
A MAMMOTH
what Irrigation Has Done on a Noke0
Plain in California.

There has been a great deal written
about Senator StanfOrd's immense
ranch at Vina, Cal, but the only way
to get an adequate idea Of it is to pay
the place a visit. Stanford's ranch
begins at the Tehama county line, and
the first view one gets of his land is not
progressing. 1t is nothing but a
barren, t~TeeleSs plain, where the bed
rock crops out in spots, and everywhere
lies but a few feet beneath the surface.
Nothing will grow here except a short,
dry weed, but the sheep like this weed,
and tie plain is therefore one vast sheep
range, for Senator Stamford is a nan
of varied resources, and manages to find
use for all the land he owns
As you approach Vina, the aspect of
the country suddenly changes, and you
jump from sun-burned plains into the
midst of green alfalfa fields and vine
yards. The former are made productive
by frequent flooding from irrigating
bitches. This flooding is good for the
| sol, but badfOr the health, and if it makes
| alfalfa, it also makes malaria. The
water is brought in bitches from Deer
Creek and turned into the fields until
il stands in a vast lake. As soon as one
crop of alfalfa is cut, another is raised
in this way, all the year round. 1t is
used very extensively for stock, in place
| of hay.
But the vineyard is the wonderful
feature of the Stanford ranch. 1t eX-
tends for several miles up and down on
each side of the road as you approach
| Vine, and back from the road as far rs the
eye can reach. In some places the vines
are large, in Others they have just been
set out. and in the latter case they are
supported by an army of stakes. This
| vineyard contains $500 acres, and is the
largest in the world, but still the Senator
is not satisfied, and proposes to have
| 5000 acres. More vines are being set
| out every year. The prettieSt sight of
all are the old Greek vines, which form
the nucleus of Senator Stanford's vine
yard. These vines are all old and stand
fully five feet high. The trunks are
larger than aman's arm. The branches
are trimmed off at the bottom and
allowed to grow out at the top, until the
vineyard looks like an orchard of young
peach trees, and they are all pruned off
so evenly that they make one level
floor of green as the eye glances across
them.
The vines already in bearing requires
the attention of several hundred men to
take care of the grapes they produce,
and it will take a small army of men to
attend the crop each year when all the
vines get to bearing. The winery
already in use on the ranch is a large
building, but now Senator Stanford is
having a brick structure erected which
covers two acres. The walls are already
up, and $40 pillars are being erected to
support the roof. The building is to
hold the wine watts and casks, and is a
sort of a wine-cellar above ground. 1t
is of mammoth proportions, but so is
the vineyard, and so will the crop OF
grapes be.
One could talk about the vineyard
and winery all day, but there are other
things to be mentioned. Next to his
vines, in Senator Standford's esteem,
come his fine horses. OF these there
are large bands to be seen, all beauties
and of the best blood. The Senator
makes n specially OF raising fast horses,
which he sells for fancy figures. Every
animal is spirited, beautifully proper
toned, and looks sleek and smooth.
The two stations to which he breeds all
his mares are Clay and Whips. The
former the Senator values at $4,000.
Clay is u rather small, brown horse,
kind and gentle in disposition. Whips
Is a fine large bay, full of life, and
beautifully built. In fact, the Senator
considers Whips the ideal of horselesh
and beyond price. The animal was ex-
pected to make very fast time, but was
lamed in his early training at Palo Alto,
and hence is used only for breeding
purposes. Several fine horses have been
famed lately on the Palo Alto track,
which is considered too hard, and the
Senator intends to build a training track
on his Vina ranch. Negotiations are
now in progress for the purchase of the
Copeland estate; which adjoins Stanford
on the west, next TO the river, and when
these negotiations are completed, the
track will probably be built on this land.
Then all the fine stock will be brought
to Vina, which will be made headquar-
tiers for the training department.
Other features of this wonderful
ranch deserve extended mention. The
nine large barns Tor the horses, WHICH
are made as comfortable as most dwell
ings; the barns where the Holsteins
have their quarters, kept as neat as a
parlor; those fine old lIolstein cattle
themselves of monstrous size and beau
tifully marked in black and white; one
cow in particular, which is being
fattened for beef, to weigh 2 500 pounds,
and which now weighs nearly 1900;
Senator Stanford's handsome two-st0ry
residence, with its extensive lawns,
flower gardens and statuary-all of these
things attract the attention and excite
the interest of the stranger. But then
everything about this great ranch is OF
interest. and after the visitor has spent
the day in examining the different
features, he still feels how little he has
seen. The ranch is one of the wonders
If this wonderful state.